Soccer | Crew: Official who took jersey to miss game

The U.S. Soccer Federation will not formally discipline referee Jair Marrufo for accepting a jersey from Chicago Fire star Cuauhtemoc Blanco after a 2-2 tie with the Crew on Saturday.

Marrufo will be pulled off a Major League Soccer game he was scheduled to work this weekend but will not be terminated or suspended. The decision was made by U.S. Soccer officials, including director of referee development Paul Tamberino, in concert with MLS officials.

The U.S. Soccer Federation will not formally discipline referee Jair Marrufo for accepting a jersey from Chicago Fire star Cuauhtemoc Blanco after a 2-2 tie with the Crew on Saturday.

Marrufo will be pulled off a Major League Soccer game he was scheduled to work this weekend but will not be terminated or suspended. The decision was made by U.S. Soccer officials, including director of referee development Paul Tamberino, in concert with MLS officials.

"(Marrufo) was informed his actions were unacceptable," U.S. Soccer spokesman Neil Buethe said. "He agreed he made an error in judgment in accepting the jersey after the match. He's not being suspended. (Pulling him off a game) is a chance for him to clear his head a little bit."

Buethe said Marrufo never asked for the jersey and that Marrufo's family has known Blanco for many years.

"(Blanco) tossed him the jersey and he caught it," Buethe said. "He understands now he should have handed it back."

Marrufo was not made available for comment. The whereabouts of the jersey are unknown, but Buethe said that Marrufo probably should not have it anymore.

Buethe said returning the jersey was discussed by federation officials, but it is not known if Marrufo will return it. He said Marrufo violated no written rules.

"The referee made a mistake in judgment," Buethe said. "Now that this has occurred, there is talk of putting a policy in the (referee's) handbook so the next time you can point to that rule and now it means he's definitely suspended."

The jersey was given to Marrufo after a game in which Blanco berated the officiating crew at halftime. With the Crew leading 2-0, Marrufo issued a red card to Crew defender Gino Padula in the 57th minute for a foul on Blanco. Chicago scored twice against the 10-man Crew, after which Blanco summoned Marrufo to the door of the official's locker room and tossed him a jersey.

"(Marrufo) realizes this was compounded by the circumstances," Buethe said. "If there was no red card to Padula and then this happens, maybe it's not as much of an issue. It's unfortunate how everything went down."

U.S. Soccer provides and oversees referees for MLS.

An MLS source indicated that it is unlikely Blanco will be punished by the league, although passages in the 2008 MLS Referee Handbook indicate that Blanco's actions were in violation of league rules.

smitchell@dispatch.com

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